A View with a Canoe
by moor
Summary: KakaSaku. Mature. Blue Lagoon AU for coolkakashisama. Altered Naruto-verse. I want to say a very special thank you to @purple-possibilities, who beta'd/co-wrote certain sections of this fic and guided me back to the story when I went off the rails.


**AN:** Thank you for inspiring this story, coolkakashisama! I LOVED writing KakaSaku again!

 **AN:** Dear readers, please note that this story is slightly AU: Naruto is currently Hokage. Kakashi was not Sakura's genin teacher. Instead, he is her team lead. In this story, Kakashi is around 25, and Sakura is approximately 23. And yes, they're stranded on a desert island together (bow chicka wowow).

 **AN:** Finally, I want to say a very special thank you to purple-possibilities , who beta'd/co-wrote certain sections of this fic and guided me back to the story when I went off the rails. ;) Thank you!

Pairing: KakaSaku  
'Verse: Altered Naruto-verse  
Genre: Romance/Drama/PWP  
Rating: M  
Prompt: Blue Lagoon AU

* * *

"We can do this the hard way, or the harder way," said Sakura, straightening up and planting her hands on her hips. She leaned back to stretch, closing her eyes to the brightness of the tropical sun scorching her burning muscles. The sand beneath her bare feet shifted as she then bent forward. Her soft hair fell over her face as she held onto her elbows, letting the weight pull her forward, stretching out her lower back. She moaned with relief.

"We've been working all morning. We've repaired the shelter, replenished our food, and checked all the traps. We can at least hollow out one of the tree trunks to start working on a canoe. If we strap several canoes together, and weave a sail from the reeds, we can meet Konoha's rescue team," Sakura continued.

With a light shake of her limbs, Sakura stood at her full height again to meet her team lead's unimpressed eyes. Defiant, she lifted her chin.

"Or do you want to stay stuck on this island?"

Kakashi had been watching her again. Sakura was sure of it, and couldn't figure out why he had suddenly started keeping tabs on her. In the last two weeks since they had been stranded, Sakura was sure she had caught Kakashi watching her out of the corner of her eye every time she moved away from the camp. The tension was starting to rub on her nerves. It didn't help that Kakashi had yet to apologize for yelling at her when they woke up on the island, covered in sand and seaweed from the storm that had capsized their ship.

"You were supposed to be on watch!" Kakashi yelled.

"You were supposed to have woken me up to do my watch!" Sakura screamed back.

In retrospect, it hadn't been a shining moment in their partnership by a long shot.

"The trees on this island are narrow. They're unlikely to be able to support our weight or displace enough water to stay afloat," said Kakashi. He looked at Sakura from his lazy eyes. "Relax and enjoy the vacation. Konoha will be here in another few days."

Sakura stared at Kakashi, incredulous.

"You said yesterday the trees were too big to strap together for a raft, and that they wouldn't hold together!"

"Ah," he agreed. From his comfortable hammock—fashioned from flexible branches and vines—Kakashi swung gently in the breeze, the orange-jacketed Icha Icha Paradise propped up on his chest. His mask concealed his expression from her, but Sakura was sure he was mocking her.

Her anger rising, Sakura's chest rose and fell with her quickening breath. Two weeks. They had been on the island for two weeks, with no help or support. Konoha may be on its way, but they still hadn't arrived and Sakura was going just a little bit crazy trying to get help from her team lead who seemed happy to doze in the sun and eat questionable shellfish everyday while he openly read porn in front of her. Meanwhile, she had wasted hours trying to chart their location and escape. Sakura found herself doing nearly all the work, and she had had it up to here with Kakashi's lack of cooperation.

In a flash, the answer came to her.

Fine. Kakashi didn't need to help her. He also didn't need to come with her.

Sakura would find a way off the island on her own.

Picking her shirt up from the sand and shaking it off, Sakura made up her mind. She would be off the island and on her way to Konoha within the next forty-eight hours, tops. Tieing her shirt around her head to keep her hair from her face, Sakura set off into the jungle in her shorts, medic skirt and chest wraps, kunai strapped to her thigh. She had a schedule to keep.

Behind her in his hammock, Kakashi watched Sakura leave from the corner of his eye. He gave her several minutes' head start before sending a clone after her.

Just in case.

"Careful, careful," Sakura muttered to herself.

It was several hours after Sakura's sort-of fight with Kakashi on the beach. Her back was sore again from breaking down several trees—she would not admit that Kakashi was right and there were in fact very few trees that were an acceptable width for her to sit in comfortably—and then hollowing out the widest ones with fire. She could do this. She had pointed one end of each trunk to shape it so it would cut through the water more smoothly, and ensured that it was well-balanced so it wouldn't be heavier on one end than the other, or drag in the choppy open water. Sakura may not have been a sailor, but she had an excellent grasp of physics. Once she built the platform to strap them together like a trimaran, she would mount the mast for the sails.

Sweat ran into Sakura's eyes as she focused on maintaining a steady stream of chakra through her palm. While the colourful birds serenaded her from the treetops, she carved out the interior trunk of the tree she felled using a precisely maintained katon jutsu. The fire jutsu wasn't as perfect as an Uchiha's, but she was quite proud of the shovel-tipped shape of it. A little bit more practice and she may even be good enough with the jutsu to score a design into the outside before she set sail. She hummed to herself, imagining the henohenomoheji she could design, or perhaps the Haruno circle…

Once the canoe was ready, Sakura would weave baskets from the thick palm and banana tree leaves. She could store plenty of food inside them for the trip. In the dappled sunlight of the protected lagoon, she smiled to herself in determination. She would be home in a few days!

So focused was Sakura that she didn't hear the clone's approach until it was leaning over her shoulder.

"You missed a spot," clone-Kakashi said, pointing.

Sakura startled and nearly burned a hole through the side of her precious vessel.

"Kakashi, what are you…" Sakura tilted her head. "You're a clone."

"Yep," eye-crease smiled the nin. "He's a worrier."

Above her skeptical green eyes, Sakura's brow arched. "I think we see things differently."

"Sometimes," agreed the clone.

Sakura glowered at clone-Kakashi a moment longer before turning back to her canoe.

"You don't have to stay," said Sakura over her shoulder as she resumed her excavation-by-fire.

"I like it here," said the clone.

The clone settled himself against a still standing tree as Sakura continued to work. Silence fell, strangely companionable compared to the hostility that had been ever present with the real Kakashi.

"You're pretty agreeable," remarked Sakura after a minute or so.

The heat and the scent of the burning wood made Sakura's eyes water, and she turned her face away from the smoke. To her surprise, clone-Kakashi picked up some discarded bark and began fanning the smoke away from her face.

"Thanks," said Sakura.

"You're welcome. Can you see better now?"

"Yes," she admitted.

"Then you can see where this section is too thin?" The clone pointed, just as Sakura burned through the crack he pointed to. "Or maybe not."

"Did you do that on purpose?" asked Sakura very quietly. Her temper flared dangerously. Had Kakashi just sent his clone to antagonize, distract and disrupt her? Was he actually sabotaging her?

"I was trying to help."

"Does that hole look like help?!" Sakura gestured angrily at the light shining through the side of the trunk-canoe.

"The trunk is uneven in density. This type of tree tends to be. That's why it isn't a good idea to make a boat out of it," said clone-Kakashi calmly. "And the outside bark has sharp spurs. It protects it from predators who may otherwise eat the bark when they're hungry… but it also prevents the trunks from being used as a raft because the bindings will be worn through before you realize it."

The clone looked down at Sakura's hands.

"You wear chakra gloves when you burn, saw through and handle the wood. Without the gloves, your hands would be quite raw by now," he pointed out.

"It doesn't have to be comfortable, it just has to function well enough to get us moving. I want to go home," said Sakura, tamping down on the short fuse of her temper before it reached the powder keg of her true irritation. "And you aren't even trying to help."

Hands stuffed in his pockets, Clone-Kakashi said nothing.

Sakura's shoulders sagged with resignation. She rested her hands on the outside of the smouldering canoe, then looked up at clone-Kakashi, genuinely curious.

"Why won't you help?"

Clone-Kakashi held her gaze but did not speak.

Sakura tilted her head, studying him. He'd been so forthcoming a moment ago. What stopped him now?

The clone held himself silent a moment longer, then another, before looking away and running a hand through his messy silver hair with a shrug.

So that was it. No answer.

Her resolve and shoulders slumping, Sakura let her head fall forward, resting her forehead on the canoe's outer gunwale. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head, some of her hair falling loose and covering her red-rimmed eyes. Why did Kakashi have to be so difficult?

"Just go," she muttered, straightening again. "If you aren't going to help, just go."

Punching a clone may make her feel better short-term, but it wasn't a solution. There was no point even wasting the swing.

When Sakura looked up once more, the clone had disappeared.

That night, Sakura made a nest of plush banana leaves and fell asleep in the jungle instead of returning to the shelter she and Kakashi shared on the beach. She couldn't stomach the sight of Kakashi's know-it-all face potentially mocking her burnt canoe. Or his insufferable laziness in his damn hammock.

When the sun rose the next morning, Sakura woke to find herself firmly ensconced in Kakashi's protective arms. No longer was she nested in her tree perch, but rather, inside the beach shelter. The walls and roof were sealed with fresh layers of palm fronds against the rain that pit-patted against it. They had worked together the previous morning to seal it all up again with fresh boughs and tree sap. It had been just in time, going by the shower that currently rained down upon them.

Sakura heaved an unhappy sigh. She was so stubborn. If she'd stayed out in the jungle the night before, she would have been soaked and even more miserable.

"Thank you," she said quietly.

Sakura didn't worry about waking Kakashi. Her team lead was always on his feet before she was. He was the lightest sleeper she'd ever met.

Sure enough, he heard her.

"Ah," replied Kakashi, just as quietly.

In spite of their disagreement, Sakura lay in Kakashi's arms, enjoying the warmth, comfort and lack of expectation. They had worked together for several years now. Grudges didn't last more than a good night's sleep, luckily.

Ignoring social decorum, Sakura closed her eyes. She snuggled into Kakashi's chest a little bit more and dozed off.

She was so swiftly asleep that she missed the small sigh Kakashi heaved under his breath, muffled by his mask.

It was mid-morning before Sakura woke again. This time, she was alone. Reaching out a hand, she found the leaves beneath and beside her still warm. As she sat up properly, she rubbed her eyes, pulling her shirt from her head and ruffling her hair. The rain had slowed to a drizzle and she listened as she looked around, searching for Kakashi.

Near the front opening of their shelter, Kakashi sat with a small cooking fire crackling by his feet. Several coconut shells, likely filled with his favourite, oysters, were sunk into the sand beside him. He glanced over at Sakura as she stretched, her jaw cracking.

"Feeling a bit better?" Kakashi asked. His voice was curious instead of mocking.

Sakura nodded.

"Thank you for letting me sleep," she said, pushing her hair from her eyes. She peered around him to take a look outside, joining him at the fire. "Rain all day?"

"Looks like," he said, handing her a skewer.

To Sakura's surprise, it speared through several perfectly grilled fish. She looked at Kakashi, brows raised.

"You spent all day yesterday fixing things. Figured you could use more protein," said Kakashi, shrugging.

Grateful, and puzzled, Sakura nodded.

"Thank you."

She bit into the lightly mango-and-coconut-flavoured white fish, sighing happily. It was delicious.

Kakashi picked up a fresh skewer and, with deliberate, exact movements, dove it into the nearest coconut shell buried in the sand at his left side. When he pulled it back, two more fish wriggled on the skewer. He staked the skewer in the sand with the fish roasting over the fire. Picking up a nearby mango, he squeezed juice over the fish again as they sizzled and cooked.

"The coconuts are full of fish?" Sakura guessed, leaning closer to Kakashi to get a better look. Rolling up on her hip so she wouldn't have to put down her breakfast, Sakura rested her hand on Kakashi's thigh to heave herself up and see around him.

Kakashi froze as Sakura's hand squeezed.

"Ah," he said, voice low.

"Wow, that's a lot. I guess we feast today," said Sakura, lowering herself back down again. She ended up sitting thigh to thigh with Kakashi, much closer than before. But she wasn't too bothered. If this much tasty food was his way of apologizing, she supposed she could accept. She watched as he cooked more, and handed her some fruit he had gathered for them.

"You were busy yesterday afternoon," she said, looking at the organized rows of food to his left. It would have taken him a while to collect so much. There was enough here to last them… days… she realized.

Sakura's hand froze as she lifted the skewer of fish to her mouth.

"You were packing food for a trip. Our trip back to Konoha," realized Sakura, confused. Her hair fell away from her face as she tilted her head at him. "But you said the canoe wouldn't work."

Kakashi shrugged. "If anyone could make it work, it would be you. It was better to be prepared."

"But you didn't want to leave. There's enough food in here for both of us for at least a week."

In the quiet, dimly lit shelter, Sakura's words trailed off. Beside her, Kakashi continued stoking the fire.

"Were you going to leave with me?" she asked, looking steadily at his too-calm features.

"Teams should stick together. Better chance of survival," said Kakashi, as if he hadn't been jeopardizing her efforts to return them to Konoha the last two weeks.

"You didn't want to leave, though."

Kakashi said nothing, which left Sakura frustrated with mounting questions.

"You didn't want to leave, though," she repeated, insisting he respond. Sakura sat up straighter, rising up on her knees and holding her skewer tighter. "You wanted to stay on the island."

"If you find another tree, a suitable one, next time I'll—" began Kakashi, only for Sakura to shake her head harder, rising up taller to point a finger in his face.

"Why? You had two weeks to help and you're only doing it now. What changed?"

To her irritation, Kakashi stared into the fire and refused to answer. Just like his clone from the day before, he closed himself off.

Outside the shelter, the rain continued to fall. The scent of the fresh water rolled through their makeshift home, mixing with the savoury fish and fresh fruit, the flowers outside and the salty sea air. The warmth from the fire staved off any hint of chill the heavy drops may have carried with them, and left their shelter a somewhat sultry heat. Inside their temporary home, however, the dichotomy of Kakashi's actions was driving Sakura crazy.

"You sabotaged me for weeks," accused Sakura.

"No. I always helped with our survival needs, and they continue to be our priority," said Kakashi.

"Survival and escape are two very different things," said Sakura angrily.

"Yes," agreed Kakashi after a moment.

"So why didn't you help with our escape needs!" burst out Sakura, confused. "We could have been back in Konoha by now!"

"Why didn't I?" repeated Kakashi, a frustrated edge clear in his tone. "Why?"

"Yes!"

"Why would I want to stay here in paradise? Why would I avoid going back to a place that holds nothing but misery and pain and bad memories for both of us?" Kakashi asked, his hands closing over his knees and squeezing tightly. "Why would I want to sleep in a simple beach shelter where nearly all my needs were met, with someone who provides more than compelling company? Why would I want you to remain safe? Why would I want the person I trust my life with to finally have a break? That I want to spend my life…" Kakashi made a guttural noise in his throat and threw his hand to the side as Sakura sat frozen in place. He sighed, jabbing at the fish skewers sharply to turn them over.

"I stayed to be with you. I packed to help you. I would have left paradise, to be with you."

A piece of Sakura's heart, hanging by the tiniest thread, shattered inside her chest at the break in Kakashi's voice.

She'd had no idea.

"But you just want to leave," Kakashi continued, every muscle in his body as tight as a stretched mooring line. Then, before Sakura's eyes, the tension left him. It was like Kakashi collapsed inside.

"So… we'll go," he said, defeated. He poked at the fire. "When the rain lifts, we'll find a better tree. We'll carve a better canoe. We'll go back to our… your… better life."

Kakashi scoffed under his breath and stood, adding, "And you can find a better man to be your team lead."

Sakura watched his back disappear through the doorway into the rain.

Kakashi was soaked when he returned that night after dark.

Sitting quietly by the fire, Sakura pretended to ignore him for a moment until she saw him head straight for their 'bed', dripping wet. Her brow furrowed.

"Hey," she called out.

It was Kakashi's turn to ignore her.

"Hey," said Sakura more distinctly, frowning at him. "Change out of your wet clothes. You're going to get the bed wet."

"Change into what, exactly?" asked Kakashi. Their belongings had been lost when the ship sank.

"Get naked for all I care, but don't get the bed wet. We don't know how long this rain is going to last." Sakura poked at the fire that helped keep some of the moisture from the air. "We should be happy we have a dry place to sleep."

Hands crossed over his chest, Kakashi held Sakura's even stare for a moment before cocking his head and appraising her. Without a word he reached down and rolled up the waist of his long-sleeve jounin shirt, revealing his sculpted abdomen. Far too confidently he peeled the snug material up and over his head. Then he tossed it on the ground. His mask remained in place, but next his hands slowly moved to his hitai-ate. All the while, he casually ignored Sakura while putting on a show for her.

Shaking her head at his theatrics, Sakura turned away initially to give him privacy. But the more skin Kakashi revealed, the harder it was for her to remain impassive.

"Are you just going to leave those on the ground? They'll get sandy," Sakura said.

Kakashi ignored her.

Sakura's jaw clenched.

Stabbing the ground with the stick she used as a fire poker, Sakura got to her feet and collected Kakashi's discarded shirt and hitai-ate.

"Just hang them on the laundry line, you lazy ass," she muttered as she slapped them on the vine she had strung across the room.

"Laundry line?" scoffed Kakashi.

"Yes," said Sakura, straightening his shirt so it wouldn't wrinkle as it dried.

"As if you've washed your clothes since we arrived," said Kakashi.

"You haven't?" gasped Sakura, looking at him in disgust. "It's been two weeks!"

She looked down at her hands and cringed.

"Ugh," she scoffed, stalking to the front of the shelter and holding her hands out in the rain to clean them.

Sakura rubbed her hands together furiously as the rain sluiced down, mentally cursing Kakashi. When she was as clean as she could muster, she returned her arms inside only to find Kakashi chuckling and shaking his head. She drew up short and glared at him.

"That was a mean and disgusting joke," she said, figuring out he'd been teasing her.

"The look on your face," he replied, giggling.

Frustrated and tired of fighting, Sakura stomped up to Kakashi. Whatever Kakashi thought Sakura was going to do, he miscalculated as Sakura slapped his naked back with a satisfying open palm, sending him arse over teakettle across the shelter floor.

"Don't be a jerk," she admonished.

Careful to stop himself before he hit one of the delicate walls of their shelter, Kakashi rolled to his feet, shaking the sand from his hair. It hadn't been a mean hit, but Sakura's strikes tended to pack a wallop. If one couldn't avoid them, it was better to roll with them.

"There's supper, if you want some," said Sakura, turning away from Kakashi to head back to supper and the fire.

Sakura had barely made it three steps before she was grabbed from behind and flipped over. She landed with a surprised yelp, instinctively kicking out at Kakashi's legs to destabilize him.

"Really?" she gasped.

"You hit me first," said Kakashi as they circled each other in the small room.

"After you hit up my sanitation kink."

"I could 'hit up' another of your kinks," taunted Kakashi as they danced ever closer to the fire.

Sakura snorted. "Like what?"

Quick as a wink, Kakashi had snatched his drying shirt from the laundry vine and thrown it in a corner where it was most definitely now covered in sand.

"Your 'tidy order' kink," he said, delighted.

"You're making it worse for yourself to get to me!?"

"Is it working?"

"You're an idiot!" exclaimed Sakura, charging Kakashi out of pure frustration, and possibly pure, old-fashioned, cabin fever.

Kakashi caught her in his arms, steadying her. He grinned down at her from behind his mask.

"But it's working," he teased.

"What's working? Do you have some kind of goal?" asked Sakura.

She grabbed at Kakashi's hands as he held her arms to her sides, preventing her from hitting him. Struggling as he easily held her captive—for even if she had chakra-infused strength, she knew using it for this kind of squabble was overkill—Sakura looked up at Kakashi and finally noticed the softness that gentled his expression as he looked at her.

"Yes," he admitted quietly. Behind his mask, his lips barely moved.

There was a flicker of emotion in Kakashi's eyes, and Sakura found she couldn't look away from him. Her breath caught as Kakashi's grip shifted, cautiously drawing her closer. It enveloped instead of restraining her, the same way he had wrapped his arms around her the night before.

Inside the protection of her ribcage, Sakura's heart beat faster.

"You really upset me yesterday," she said.

"I was frustrated that you were able to leave me so easily. I didn't want to lose you and did something… stupid. And jealous," Kakashi admitted.

"Will you really help us get home? No more games?"

"Ah."

With slow, careful gestures, Sakura let her arms fall away from Kakashi's. Her hands lowered to his muscled waist where she wrapped her arms around him. A half-beat later she rested her head against his naked chest, sinking into him as her body and reluctance softened in peaceful acceptance.

Above her, Sakura heard the whoosh of air from Kakashi's lips as he sighed in relief.

"Are you going to get a new team lead?" he asked mournfully.

Sakura smiled against his pectoral muscle. "No," she sighed. "I spent too much time getting used to this one."

Her resigned tone made Kakashi chuckle. He leaned down to kiss the top of Sakura's head, just as she was looking up to ask him a question in return.

Their lips brushed and bumped, accidentally at first, through Kakashi's mask. It was such fleeting contact that she almost would have believed Kakashi had been clumsy, until she remembered that nothing Kakashi did was accidental. It was his way of asking for consent, and something Sakura had been yearning for since his unintentional confession earlier on.

Out of respect, and with giddy anticipation, Sakura closed her eyes and listened.

Sure enough, she heard the mask being pulled away.

Kakashi did not leave her wanting long. Their mouths touched once more, swept more deliberately, exploring each other and testing the boundaries of their newfound, shared attraction. Sakura's heart fluttered when she felt Kakashi's hand trail up her back to cup her head, angling her for a proper kiss that quickly left her breathless. The low moan of male approval that Sakura felt rumble from Kakashi's chest to hers made her smile. She heard the mask slide back into place and opened her eyes again.

"You aren't a genjutsu," sighed Kakashi happily, pulling Sakura flush against him and holding her tightly.

"And you aren't a fantasy daydream anymore," teased Sakura, rubbing her hands up and down Kakashi's back.

He leaned back a bit to look at her, one brow raised and openly curious. Sakura blushed.

"There may have been one or two that were quite vivid," she admitted.

Sakura may not have been able to see his expression directly, but she knew that Kakashi was quite happy to hear that going by how he prodded her middle… with his damp trousers.

"I don't suppose I could convince you to take these off?" With her fingers trailing the top of Kakashi's waistband, she dipped a finger inside and tugged him into her. The coarse hairs of his treasure trail tantalized her fingers.

Swallowing his grunt, Kakashi held Sakura's gaze as he reached down and started undoing his belt. Then he paused.

Kakashi took Sakura's hands in his and brought them to his belt. She took the hint and finished pulling it out for him, slowly.

"What else should come off?" he asked, a little breathless.

"What else is wet?" asked Sakura, letting the belt slide to the sandy ground.

Kakashi smirked.

"I can think of a few things…"

Sakura giggled as Kakashi bussed a kiss at the sensitive spot between her breasts.

"You're distracting me," she said, wrapping her arms around the back of his neck and pulling him closer.

Their clothes were strewn along the laundry vine, and darkness had long fallen outside the shelter. Inside, they pressed closer to each other, skin to skin, in the shadows. The only secret left between them was hidden behind Kakashi's mask.

"I was getting something. It was supposed to be a surprise," said Kakashi, pulling out a storage scroll from the 'shelf' (a loose plank) they had hung from one of the support beams.

With a quick release jutsu, he held out the wrapped item to Sakura.

"Unwrap it, gently," he said. The innuendo was clear.

Sakura smirked at him as she did, one fold after another, after another, after another…

"It's a blanket!"

"Close," agreed Kakashi. He helped her lift it up so she could see the shape. "It's a sail. For your canoe."

Warmth filled Sakura's heart as she threw her arms around Kakashi.

"You really meant it!"

A heavy sigh parted Kakashi's lips as he held onto Sakura with one arm and the sail with the other. He kissed her temple again through his mask.

"We can make another one later. For now," he said, tossing it over their leafy bed. "I think we can make better use of it."

Biting her lip, Sakura took Kakashi's hand and pulled him down to the ground atop the makeshift blanket. With an excited smile, she playfully pushed his shoulders down to the ground, pinning him in place.

As Kakashi looked up at Sakura from beneath his silver bangs, his expression froze. Sakura's thumb was tracing the edge of his mask as she studied him. She raised her eyebrows in question.

Taking Sakura's hands in his, Kakashi brought her palms to his mouth, kissing them through the material. Then he gently clasped her fingers around the mask's hem below his jaw, and helped her tug it down to reveal his masculine lips, straight teeth and relaxed, happy smile.

It was such an endearing and boyish a smile that Sakura had to squelch the urge to squeal like a little girl. She wasn't entirely sure Kakashi would appreciate her calling him adorable when they were about to screw each other into the sand.

"Surprise," said Kakashi, grinning at her again.

Bringing her hands to each side of Kakashi's face, Sakura beamed down at him in return, ecstatic.

"I know what this means to you. It means so much to me."

"Sexual favours mean a lot to me, too," he said seriously, making Sakura laugh out loud. He flexed his hips to encourage her. "All aboard."

He was such a dork, but Sakura couldn't help but find it endearing.

Her hair falling around her shoulders in loose beach waves, Sakura leaned over Kakashi and kissed his forehead, then his cheek. She hovered over his lips a moment before he whined.

Sakura swatted his chest, though gently this time. "Come on, I just got to see them! I want to kiss them!"

"They want to kiss your pretty lips, too!"

Giving in, Sakura bent down to peck Kakashi on the lips. As she pulled back, she noticed Kakashi's smirk.

"Not those lips."

It was the only warning Sakura got before Kakashi grabbed her around the middle, lifting her clean off her knees as if she weighed less than a cloud. With formidable ease he settled her down again, her legs on either side of his head. His strong hands pressed against her inner thighs and parted her wider, leaving her core open to his frank appraisal and delight.

"Relax," Kakashi said confidently from underneath her, voice suddenly husky, stroking Sakura's hips and lower back to keep her from wiggling away self-consciously.

"This isn't what I had in mind," she said, a bit embarrassed.

"I haven't been able to get it out of my mind," countered Kakashi. "Kami you have the most beautiful…"

His voice trailed off as he drew Sakura's hips down, sealing his lips over hers with a happy sigh.

Unsure what to do, Sakura waited for a second. Then she learned, very quickly, that Kakashi was not only a master nin.

The strangeness of the contact unsettled her until she felt the first swipe of his tongue inside her, testing and tasting her. His low groan of appreciation had her stomach fluttering, and she glanced down to find his handsome face enraptured. It was such an erotic sight that Sakura's cheeks warmed, her breathing hitched, and she let out a small sigh of her own.

When Kakashi heard it, he looked up at Sakura from between her thighs, caught her eye and arched a smug brow.

That was when Sakura's stomach clenched, and Kakashi's fingers began to stretch her deliciously. Another swipe of his tongue, this one deeper, kindled a rising pressure inside Sakura and she finally began to understand and enjoy the way Kakashi's lips nuzzled and tasted her. His rhythm expanded to suit each of her gasps and moans, stretching her and teasing her in turns. It left Sakura frozen in place, trembling, unsure how to act and feel as her mind shut down and simply abandoned her to the thrall of Kakashi's sensual ministrations.

Then Kakashi stroked Sakura's clit with a long pass of his talented tongue, turning Sakura's vision white. Instinctively she grabbed for Kakashi's wild hair, gasping his name in surprise and desire—yes, she was definitely amenable to this new, rather pleasurable kind of 'kissing' arrangement. Her lower belly clenched as the pressure inside her spiked. By now her hips undulated in time with the rhythm Kakashi set, and Sakura found herself grinding against him with each caress of his lips or press of his thumb.

Sakura's thighs tightened around Kakashi's shoulders just as her eyes slipped shut. She was so delirious from the rising pleasure she missed Kakashi smirking against her, or the glint in his eye as he decided his next move. Another finger entered her and her mouth fell open even as he continued pumping inside her. Sakura's blood rushed through her as she tried to hold on tighter.

Then Kakashi doubled the pressure on her clit, and Sakura's walls contracted so hard around his fingers he made a noise of surprise before he simply finger-fucked her harder.

"Yes yes yes yes," Sakura chanted, breathing shakily. Her head fell back before she arched forward and tensed.

Stars exploded behind Sakura's eyes as Kakashi finally overwhelmed her senses. A small breath escaped her lips as she found her release, just barely catching herself with her forearm as she bowed over Kakashi, boneless.

Panting and legs trembling, Sakura waited a moment before picking herself up slightly and looking down between her thighs, only to find Kakashi smirking up at her. Her arm gave out as she dropped her forehead to the ground, unable to look away from his pleased expression (even if it was upside down).

"Not so bad?" he asked.

"Don't look so smug," laughed Sakura. "And…" Unable to form words, she laugh-sighed freely.

The teasing lift to Kakashi's lips softened to a genuine smile.

"My pleasure," he said, turning to kiss Sakura's inner thigh.

In the intimate quiet of their shelter, Kakashi stroked Sakura's backside as she caught her breath. When she finally lifted herself again, she carefully slid back down Kakashi's body, the languid relaxation leaving her movements lithe and sensual. It was her turn, now.

When Kakashi saw the look on Sakura's face, he knew the tables had turned. He couldn't wait.

"Is someone up for a bit of petty vengeance?" he asked, lifting a hand to cup her cheek.

"Oh, I wouldn't say petty, exactly," said Sakura, biting her bottom lip. "And is it really vengeance if you only have the other person's best interests at heart?"

"I'd rather feel my best interest moving inside you," said Kakashi with a cheeky smile, gently stroking Sakura's bottom lip with the pad of his thumb until she released it from her teeth.

"That we can agree on."

The tension grew as Sakura trailed her eyes down Kakashi's firm, muscled body, from the divot beneath his adam's apple to the hard planes of his pectorals. Circling the flat disc of first one nipple, then the other, Sakura smiled and traced each of Kakashi's sculpted abs in turn, teasing and enticing them to flex and quiver as she moved down his torso towards his treasure trail.

Sakura smirked at the way Kakashi's cock twitched when she ghosted her fingers down the 'v' that led to her true goal.

Curious and tempted by the heady pulse of Kakashi's erection, Sakura raked her fingers a little harder down his lower body, excited by the thick jump that welcomed her attention, and the hard clench of his abdomen.

Kakashi's sharp intake of break had Sakura licking her lips in anticipation.

"Tease," complained Kakashi, breathing heavily—until he choked.

Sakura had grasped him firmly and begun to pump him in earnest. With a slight lift of her hips, Sakura welcomed Kakashi's member inside her. The first several inches entered her hot, welcoming pussy snugly, until there was a pause.

"Is there…" Kakashi's hands halted at Sakura's waist as she held herself quite still.

"You're a bit more impressive than I realized," said Sakura, squirming a bit as she tried to get used to the stretch. She dropped her head down to the crook of Kakashi's neck and shoulder, then gently began to rock her hips, lowering herself down on him an inch at a time.

Swallowing tightly, Kakashi's grip on Sakura's hips turned bruising as his head fell back against the blanket. Snug between Sakura's thighs, Kakashi lay stretched out on the sandy blanket.

"You okay?" asked Sakura. Her core slowly, hungrily swallowed another thick inch of Kakashi's cock.

"Hn," was all Kakashi managed to grit out through his teeth. He refused to admit it had been a while, or that the feel of her warm, moist channel rhythmically squeezing and sucking him in was making it very difficult for him to remember he was not a virgin, and was in fact plenty experienced, and _sweet merciful kami_ , he wasn't sure if he wanted to know what would happen because if she bore down on him any tighter and he would—

The tip of him pressed against something firm inside Sakura, making her grimace. Guessing what had happened, Kakashi froze.

"Hold on a sec," Sakura breathed, and Kakashi held very still.

Sitting up to lean and arch her back, Sakura braced her hands on Kakashi's thighs, presenting herself to him completely unabashedly. She sighed with relief and took in the last of Kakashi, a pleased, hopeful look clear on her beautiful face. She lifted her brows at him.

"Is this okay?" she asked, cheeks flush with exertion and pleasure.

Kakashi's mouth went dry at the incredible sight and feeling. For a moment he forgot how to speak. Sakura didn't leave him waiting long.

Sakura expertly lifted and dropped her hips, rising and falling on Kakashi's thick cock, slow at first until she built up a steady rhythm. Her lower lips stretched snugly around him, Kakashi was left breathless each time she lifted to reveal his glistening hardness, before sinking down on him until they were joined together again, the image almost more distracting than the pleasure.

Each movement left Sakura's breasts bouncing, the air huffing out of her in staccato gasps, and Kakashi was enthralled. Kakashi swallowed as he tentatively pumped his hips, finding that as long as Sakura was arched backward, he did not hit what he guessed was her cervix. This time, with Kakashi thrusting more confidently, he was rewarded by Sakura's small mewl of pleasure.

"Just like that," she said, squeezing his thighs with her hands. "Play with me, please," she begged.

Bringing an arm behind Sakura's rear to hold her hips close, Kakashi sat up and used the other to reach up and worship Sakura's breasts. Her warm, soft, sun-kissed skin was damp with perspiration and faintly salty to Kakashi's mouth as he wrapped his lips around first one pebbled nipple, then the other, spurred on by Sakura's wanton cries.

"Feel so heavy," she whispered, presenting her breasts to him. "Please, Kakashi."

Desperately he obliged her. He rolled one nipple sweetly between his fingers and gently tugged the other with his teeth in time with his thrusts, thrilled by the way her areola darkened further and further.

Sakura's words left Kakashi growing further inside Sakura's core, and he heard her whimper as she adjusted to his new girth.

"Someone has been—keeping secrets," she said, letting her head fall back as a tantalising shiver raced up and down her spine.

"This hasn't… happened before," admitted Kakashi, pumping into Sakura with even greater purpose, now as something primal began to grow inside of him. It was new and tantalizing and drew them closer together, as if their bodies tried to find the perfect fit for each other to hold him inside her longer, tighter.

The scents surrounding them became clearer to Kakashi, from the ocean breeze and fresh rain to the coconut sweetness and most impressively, Sakura's feminine lust. Its sultry heat turned him on like nothing ever had before. He found himself hyperfocused on the mesmerizing darkness of her green eyes as they shone at him, at the taste of her on his lips as they kissed. The feel of her shaking as he gripped her hips and brought her down harder, because he had to, had to feel her skin in his hands, dewy with humidity and sweat. It was driving him wild, and he recognized the urge, finally, as confirmation he had found his life mate.

It stunned him for a moment, until Sakura twisted her hips just so and left his jaw clenching, the cords of his neck straining as he hissed out harshly. The tip of him prodded her deep inside again, and the sensations sent jolts of pleasure coursing through him dangerously.

 _Sakura. His mate._

It was too much for him to take in.

"Oh kami, what is this?" begged Sakura, another frisson running between her shoulder blades.

With an inarticulate, sensual noise, Sakura rocked forward, abruptly changing their angle and nearly setting off Kakashi's carefully controlled fuse. His breath caught in his throat as he fought the urge to simply drive himself up into her like an animal. Subduing the feral side of himself, Kakashi focused on his breathing and dropped his head onto Sakura's shoulder, closing his eyes. How had this happened?

How would she react?

"You keep doing that, this isn't going to last much longer," he warned through his teeth. But kami he wished it could. This incredible feeling growing inside him—this primal mating—was new to him. He genuinely felt concern about what would happen when he did let go. Would it harm Sakura? Would she still be able to take all of him when he—

His heart nearly stopped as Sakura's nails dug into his shoulders and she began a determined grind on him.

"Just like that! Another, _ngh! Kakashi!"_

Kakashi's mouth dropped open. Oh no, oh kami, he wasn't going to make it—

Then Sakura squeezed him so deeply inside her, it was the most perfect feeling in the world.

Kakashi's vision went white. Suddenly he realized he was pounding into Sakura like a jackhammer, like he couldn't seem to get close enough, deep enough. He had one hand clamped around her back to force them together, another hand between her slick thighs where they were joined so intimately, rubbing furiously at her clit. Sakura came with a shout, suddenly struggling, bucking, and tensing in his arms.

Seeing Sakura's emotions so open on her face was too much for Kakashi. He tried to hold off, tried to look down to hold himself back, but the skin to skin contact did him in.

While she whimpered his name on trembling breaths, Kakashi fucked his beautiful Sakura with every intention of branding her insides with his seed.

 _Every. Fucking. Inch,_ he repeated to himself harshly as he pumped her full, not letting up until he gasped from the loss of his own essence.

Sealing their mouths together, Kakashi swallowed Sakura's keen as together they arched and went taut.

Sakura was limp in Kakashi's arms when he finally fell back down onto the torn blanket, clutching her to him. His chest shuddered from his exhaustion, and Sakura mumbled his name, her fingers tangling in his hair as she reached for him, still. In their quiet, private, paradise home, he was unable to let her go.

 _My mate,_ was Kakashi's last coherent thought.

The next morning, Sakura woke to the sound of gentle snores by her ear.

"'Kashi?" she mumbled, snuggling closer to the warm pillow beneath her.

The pillow breathed, adjusted a bit, and continued its soft, even snores.

Sakura smiled and decided to enjoy another forty winks.

Deliciously filled, Sakura woke with a satisfied stretch and a smile on her face. Now on her back, she looked up and sighed happily. It was not a bad way to wake, discovering the most handsome face she'd ever seen in her life studying her carefully.

"For the record, you started it," said Kakashi, a hand at Sakura's right breast as he circled and teased her aureola with his pointer finger.

"I'm not complaining," replied Sakura, canting her hips to take him in deeper.

In fact, Sakura took the opportunity to look down between their bodies, and bit her lip.

"You like that?" asked Kakashi, voice husky and eyes dark as he watched her watching them.

Sakura's cheeks warmed. "I like to watch. You. Going in and out of me. Thinking about you filling me up," she said, glancing up at him from beneath her loose bangs. "How virile you must be to have stayed so hard for so long. You didn't even fully slide out last night, you know." Deeper and deeper he sank into her, and she squeezed him in welcome. "I want you to take me from behind today," she whispered, rising up on her elbows to whisper in his ear. "I want you so deep in me I forget my own name," she said, before placing open-mouthed kisses down Kakashi's exposed throat, nipping every so often.

Kakashi groaned—and twitched inside Sakura.

There it was again. They both felt it.

Sakura's eyes widened as she looked down, watching Kakashi's cock swelling and growing even harder between her plump pussy lips. Her lips parted in surprise.

"How big does it get?" she asked, voice husky.

Watching their slick union himself, Kakashi felt another twinge at the hunger in Sakura's voice. There was something special about their mating though he didn't want to risk speaking it aloud to Sakura quite yet. As Sakura purred happily at the resulting stretch, he was more prepared when the next swell happened.

For her part, Sakura gasped in surprise as Kakashi began rolling again, but not in discomfort.

"Wow," she sighed, letting her head fall back. Her chest rose and fell, taunting him, but Kakashi only had eyes for Sakura's beautiful expressions.

Sakura closed her eyes a moment as her smile widened. "Oh yes," she moaned, as Kakashi brought a hand between them. Eager to teach Kakashi more, Sakura brought her hands to her breasts, showing Kakashi what she liked. He was a quick learner.

With even pressure Kakashi dragged his fingers around Sakura's puckering nipples, slowing as he closed in around their stiff tips. He held her gaze as he gently rubbed his thumbs over her them before starting to gently twist and tug them. He continued the routine, alternating the pressure to find Sakura's sweet spots, flexing his hips and pumping inside her until her walls squeezed him in warning just before she tensed and keened softly, her eyes clouding with lust as she climaxed.

Being the good student that he was, Kakashi repeated the patterns over and over again, leaving Sakura gasping, trembling and begging insensibly until she melted against the blanket, boneless.

But it wasn't enough. When Sakura felt him move again inside her, she knew what she wanted. The sweetness was wonderful, but she was desperate for him to take her in the most animalistic way. There was something about Kakashi that made her want to submit to him now, to be filled by him. Going by the look in his eyes as she brought one of his hands down to her backside, lifting it for him to slap it, he understood she was ready.

After a tense beat that left them staring at each other in wonder, Sakura tapped Kakashi's side, lifting her brows and biting her lip. Knowing what it meant for his mate to behave so eagerly, Kakashi's heart skipped. As they flipped positions, Sakura found herself on her hands and knees, Kakashi grabbing her rear raising high for his final penetration.

"Don't make me wait," she pleaded, looking up at him from over her shoulder.

From his worshipful position on his knees behind Sakura, Kakashi swallowed. He gazed down at the promising snugness of Sakura's pussy. Her lower lips glistened with their combined want, empty and just waiting to be filled by his ever-thickening cock. Lightheadedness overtook Kakashi for a moment as all his blood rushed south. Whatever he had done to deserve such a generous, willing partner, he prayed he kept doing it.

Unable to stop himself, Kakashi stroked his thick erection as he caressed Sakura's backside. Licking the inside of his lip, he paused a moment as he looked between Sakura's glistening pussy and his cock. Would it be too much for her?

"Kakashi?" questioned Sakura as he paused.

His brow slightly furrowed, Kakashi met Sakura's shining eyes.

"If you don't fuck me, right now…"

Kakashi shook his head with a chuckle. Disappointment wasn't an option. He gave a light slap to the side of Sakura's arse, his only warning, before lining himself up and sinking in.

He would never admit it to anyone, but the sound he made as he slid home was half-gasp, half-sob.

"Fuck you feel so good," he praised. His hands shook as they clamped onto Sakura's hips.

The friction he'd worried about, the thickness he was concerned would have been too much, was wiped away the instant Sakura let out a pleasured moan. Encouraging him, she reached between her legs to tug and stretch his sac, massaging his balls between her chakra-glowing fingers.

"Sakura," he warned through his teeth when she prodded him with just a touch of chakra.

"Fuck me, Kakashi," ordered Sakura. "If I can still walk when you're done, then you didn't do it right."

Challenge issued, Kakashi's eyes narrowed.

And he accepted.

This time, Kakashi left Sakura screaming his name when he burst inside her.

The following morning, as Sakura woke on Kakashi's chest, still impaled on his still hard cock, she sensed chakra.

It was neither hers nor Kakashi's.

Sitting up quickly and accidentally grinding against Kakashi, her knees snug on either side of his hips, Sakura looked around. Nothing inside their shelter was disturbed. No sign of attack. She reached her senses out further, even as Kakashi moaned and began automatically, if sleepily, thrusting up into her. Sakura had to admit it was a lovely way to wake up, but for now she focused on reading the chakra signatures that were bouncing over the water on their way to them, on the waves that crashed into their beach.

"They're coming," said Sakura, recognizing the familiarity of some of the signatures.

"'S too early," mumbled Kakashi, reaching between Sakura's legs. "Need a few minutes."

"Not us. Them. Konoha," said Sakura. She bit her lip as Kakashi began to caress her in the way he knew made her squeeze him tighter inside. Stroking her hand down his chest, she bore down on him, exhaling as she rolled with his leisurely pace. It was a little slower than their usual morning romp, and incredibly satisfying. They still had some time.

"How long?" he asked.

"At least half an hour," said Sakura, leaning forward. She sealed their mouths together and kissed Kakashi, long and deep. "Don't you dare stop."

"Talk dirty to me," said Kakashi, grinning up at Sakura when the kiss broke.

"I'll do you one better, if you play nicely."

Curious and unwilling to let their affair end quite yet, Kakashi nodded. Sakura smiled, then gave him a sultry look.

Shaking her loose hair, Sakura reached back to hold her hair up messily before she let her other hand roam over her body. Peeking at him through her lashes, she smiled coyly, her fingers slipping inside herself where they joined, putting on a wanton show for Kakashi.

Her fingers massaged him inside her, tracing along the seam where they were connected. Her hips undulated like the sea, drawing him in and out like a rising tide. Genuine pleasure spread across her face, kitten mewls and feminine moans shaking his control as his fingers flexed on her soft skin. The entire time she held his gaze, even when she leaned forward to nuzzle and kiss him.

"Only you make me feel like this, Kakashi," she breathed against his lips.

 _Forget the words, just keep making the sounds,_ mentally begged Kakashi as Sakura made him feel like a god. Within seconds he was lightheaded from the amount of blood that rushed south. And never stop looking at me like that.

But half an hour wasn't long at all, and it passed in a blur of pleasure.

"Not much longer," Sakura gasped. Perspiration dampened her hair until it stuck to her face, and she glanced at the doorway. From her position, now on her back on the sandy beach floor, she could make out the ship on the horizon. Which meant anyone on it would soon spot their shelter, and potentially them inside it.

"I just want to taste you again," said Kakashi as he pumped into Sakura. On his knees, Kakashi sat back on his heels with Sakura's hips cradled in his lap. Her legs were stretched out long between them, against Kakashi's chest. She pointed her feet by his ears as he crossed his arms over her legs to hold her in place. He dropped his head in remorse. It would be ending so soon.

"Kakashi," worried Sakura. "We need to finish. I think I can hear them."

Sakura squirmed. She was still so receptive, too sensitive. The pleasure bordered on pain, but she didn't want to stop. It was heaven and hell at once as she tried to break the bond she had formed with Kakashi, both mentally and physically, though both attempts were made half-heartedly. Every thrust he made inside her reminded her of how perfectly they suited each other, and also how much she would miss him when they returned to Konoha and went back to their regular, duty-bound lives. With each moment that passed, she knew their time together was coming to a close, and for the first time she realized how much she did not want it to end.

Their time on the island hadn't been perfect, but their time together had been. Every touch, every thrust, every intimate, vulnerable shudder. When they set foot on the ship that would separate them from their private paradise, she was going to miss Kakashi terribly because she cared for him more deeply than she realized.

Better to keep their temporary tryst to themselves, a private secret, a physical act of desperation and loneliness. One they could lock away and look back on fondly, but not over exaggerate.

Kakashi's hair fell over his eyes as he huffed, "Just another few minutes."

Brows furrowing as Kakashi picked up the pace, Sakura shook her head. She needed to be firm. It had to end now. "No, they're—"

"Please, Sakura."

Lifting his head, Kakashi looked into Sakura's wide, green eyes. Sakura swallowed as Kakashi cupped her face.

"Don't push me away, Sakura." He shook his head, his lips curved in a devastatingly handsome smile. "… Not yet."

 _Ah, so he knew it was over, too?_ Sakura's heart twisted traitorously in her chest, even as she felt Kakashi moving inside her lovingly, her pleasure spiking in spite of her pain.

Swallowing her complaints, Sakura looked away. What they needed was more time. Even a few minutes. But what could they do for a distraction? The rescue team was nearly at their door.

Then she felt Kakashi inside her, changing to the pace she liked best. Her stomach fluttered as she looked up and saw his determined expression. Her walls contracted around him tightly at the darkness that shadowed his face. He wasn't going to let her go; no, he was about to make her beg. It made Sakura's heart stop for a second with pure want. Oh kami, she just needed him inside her, feeling this good, making her delirious with need.

But they needed time—

A desperate idea formed in Sakura's mind. She looked back at Kakashi, bringing her hands together with an eager expression. The white hot pleasure caused her hands to tremble and her chakra to fluctuate dangerously under her skin, but all it took was a moment, a second to gather her wildly careening thoughts as Kakashi moved so deliciously inside her.

"What are you—"

A clone poofed into existence beside them.

"Kage bunshin?" asked Kakashi. Understanding dawned on his face.

"Go distract the guests!" ordered Sakura, sending the clone away. It nodded before hurrying out the doorway. Kakashi watched it go before looking down at a very flushed Sakura again.

Wasting no more time, Kakashi released and parted Sakura's legs. He hauled her up so she straddled his lap, their hearts beating hard. Sakura wrapped her arms around Kakashi's neck, her legs around his hips.

Clasping Sakura to him, Kakashi leaned down to kiss her deeply in gratitude.

"Thank you," he said when they broke apart.

"It'll only buy us a few minutes," Sakura warned. She ground down on him, knowing it made him incoherent at times. "Do you have something special planned?"

He enjoyed the look on Sakura's face a moment later. Her eyes widened, her mouth fell open, the quietest sigh fell from her lips as she tried to stifle a desperate moan.

Kakashi smirked.

" …Guess what I learned to control?"

The village of Konoha was quiet the night Kakashi and Sakura's rescue party returned.

No injuries meant their party was cleared from duty once they passed through the tall red gates. The Hokage had left a message that outside of confirming they had returned safely, he didn't want to hear from them until they had rested for twenty-four hours. It made Sakura smile and wonder if Naruto, their current Hokage, would actually be able to wait twenty-four hours before storming her door to check on her.

As Sakura and Kakashi awkwardly adjusted the emergency supply packs they'd been given, they stood just inside Konoha's gates, silent and mindful of their rescue team.

"Trusting you two don't need an escort any further?"

Sakura and Kakashi looked at TenTen and shook their heads.

TenTen smiled and winked. "I didn't think so. We'll catch up soon, okay?" she said to Sakura.

Sakura waved and nodded as TenTen jogged home. Around them, the rest of the team disbanded and disappeared.

In the nighttime still of one of the village's busiest thoroughfares, Kakashi and Sakura stood uncertainly, unsure of where to go next.

"I guess we have a bit of time to re-acclimatize ourselves," said Sakura.

Kakashi nodded.

What were they supposed to say next?

Neither knew.

Feeling exhaustion pulling at her, Sakura ran a hand through her hair and smiled a bit sadly at Kakashi. It wasn't as if they'd made plans or anything. And now that they were back, it wasn't as if they had a real relationship. Once they got working again, things would just slide back into their usual routines, she thought, turning towards her apartment. Bickering, discussing strategy, sparring—

—a patient hand closed over hers, coaxing her to stop.

Sakura looked up to find Kakashi looking at her in question.

Without a word, Kakashi tugged Sakura in a different direction. She recognized the street that led to his apartment.

She raised her eyebrows in question. _Are you sure?_

Behind his mask, he relaxed and smiled.

Together they made their way to his place.

 **The End.**


End file.
